


letters sent

by MajesticAnna



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Haikyuu!! Manga Spoilers, Post-Time Skip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-25
Updated: 2020-07-25
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:35:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25509088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MajesticAnna/pseuds/MajesticAnna
Summary: Yachi touches a corner of the photo, tracing the memories that flit through her head. It must be lonely in Rio, she thinks. Even for one as vibrant as Hinata.+++Yachi supports a friend from across the globe.
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou & Kageyama Tobio & Tsukishima Kei & Yachi Hitoka & Yamaguchi Tadashi, Hinata Shouyou & Yachi Hitoka
Comments: 44
Kudos: 176





	letters sent

Yachi places the packing tape linear to the seal, and moves the roller from left to right.

_Shrrrrrrrrrrreeep._

She giggles at the noise while she pats the tape down. The sound reminds her of all the expressive _waahs_ and _shooms_ Hinata made when mimicking hitting a volleyball. 

Every few months, Yachi organizes a care package for Hinata, full of goodies to remind him of home. The main people who contribute include her closest third year friends; Yamaguchi was sweet and had given her a standing offer to deliver the box to the post office himself. She can carry the package just fine, but it was a nice gesture. 

This time, Yachi is sending a collage of her favorite photos from high school: the volleyball team growing throughout the years. Surrounding the center image are photobooth sheets of Kageyama with cat ears, candids of a smiling Tsukishima—well, his version of a smile— promotional photos of Hinata mid-spike, a polaroid of Yachi and Hinata grinning by the manager bench, and Yamaguchi, Hinata, Kageyama, and Tsukishima, all in a line, their backs to the camera, standing on the national stage one last time.

In the center, is Yachi’s personal favorite: the five of them smiling for the camera. If she’s being specific, Tsukishima looks tired and grumpy, while Kageyama wears his usual resting, pouty face. But the other three are smiling, teeth bright and smiles wide, with Hinata lying down on the floor in the front, his hands outstretched.

Yachi touches a corner of the photo, tracing the memories that flit through her head. It must be lonely in Rio, she thinks. Even for one as vibrant as Hinata. 

She is only one person, and currently lives on the other side of the globe. But she hopes this small gesture—this small reminder of how much warmth Hinata has in his life—will help remind him that he has a place to return to. 

Now that the bottom is sealed, Yachi organizes the box with all the letters and other gifts from their kouhai, old senpai, coaches, and even Hinata’s little sister, Natsu. It’s Hinata’s birthday in a few weeks, and many people wanted to send him well wishes when Yachi sent out the email about this care package.

Yachi tucks a little doll among the letters, one she has a suspicion was commissioned by Kozume. It is a small Hinata in beach volleyball gear, tiny shaded glasses and a smear of sunscreen on his nose. Yachi found it by her photo collage after class one day, and though she was admittedly freaked out and thought someone was trying to send her a death threat, a note by the doll said to add it to the parcel for Hinata.

She probably needs to talk with Kozume about boundaries, but he’s rich, so does he really have any?

Natsu provided a white sweat-proof shirt that ‘shouldn’t clash horribly with his hair’. Quite a number of people sent Hinata volleyball related items, from chibi athlete stickers on their envelopes to sneaker keychains to a recipe from Coach Ukai that he thought Hinata might enjoy after practice.

Thankfully, no one sent anything too heavy, though Kageyama had asked if a new volleyball would fit in the box; he eventually went with a letter and a hand-made coupon to take him to a volleyball match when Hinata returned. 

After finishing the packing, Yachi gets the tape out to seal the box again. 

_Shrrrrrrrrrrreeep._

Though Hinata is far from reach, and FaceTime calls can only do so much, she hopes these physical reminders of the people who care for him will keep his spirits up from thousands of miles away.

+++

Yachi knows she’s short, but in a packed izakaya, the burly odors and bodies squish into her, trapping her in one place.

“Sorry, let us through, please!” 

Hinata and Yamaguchi are by her side in the next second. She gently grabs their elbows and they lead her through the bar, carding through the bodies with no resistance. She supposes her stature isn’t as intimidating as Yamaguchi’s height or Hinata’s muscles. They guide her to a small table in the back, a quiet area away from the heated crowd. 

“Whew!” Hinata says, slumping his body into a seat. The pounding voices stream through their ears, but in their little corner, the sound is dulled. “Thought we lost you there, Yachi-san!”

Yachi smiles, her heart full and light. “Thank you both for helping me out.”

“No problem,” Yamaguchi says, sitting next to her. “Do you know if Tsukki or Kageyama are here yet?”

“They should be here soon.” As their former club manager, Yachi is used to the quirks of her friends. Though Tsukishima claims to hate social interaction, he always arrives right on time, whereas Yamaguchi and Hinata are usually early. Kageyama is usually an early arrival, to take part in his infamous races against Hinata, but he’s later than normal today. He’s currently on his way, according to the last text he sent Yachi.

A waitress sets down waters for them and Yamaguchi asks if any of them are planning on drinking tonight. 

“I have practice in the early morning, so I probably shouldn’t.” Hinata winces. “Not that I haven’t gone to a practice hungover before but... it’s not pleasant.”

“Oh, congrats, by the way!” Yamaguchi says. “The game was awesome to watch, I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. 

“Thank you,” Hinata says. He looks at the table, fingers sliding through the condensation on the glass. “It certainly has been a journey.”

“Got that right. You’re not giving up now, are you?”

Yachi turns to the newcomer, and sees Kageyama standing next to Hinata, smirking down at his longtime friend and rival. It’s not a mean glare, more of a remnant of their competitive spirits from all those years ago. There’s something softer about the way he looks at Hinata now, like he’s finally fulfilled the promises they set as teenagers.

Something in Yachi’s heart pulls. She’s so proud of the people her friends have become.

“Ah, ‘Yama’Yama, this is just the beginning of the season!” When Kageyama sits down, Hinata lifts a hand to ruffle his friend’s black hair. “Don’t worry, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to best me again. As long as you’re ready to lose!”

Yamaguchi laughs and Yachi snorts into her drink. “That’s enough declarations, or we’ll make you run laps as punishment!”

“Running laps is a punishment?” Hinata turns to Kageyama. “Want to race around the bar?”

“As if we’d let you do that.” Tsukishima slides into his seat and glares at the two men. “Please refrain from embarrassing us.” 

“Tsukki!” Instead of Yamaguchi yelling this, it’s actually Hinata. Tsukishima tries to look at Hinata with disgust, but it only comes out looking vaguely disgruntled. Seems he’s losing his touch, Yachi thinks. “I heard you joined the Sendai Frogs!”

“Yes, I did,” Tsukishima says. “And no, I won’t play volleyball against you right now, so keep that thought to yourself.”

This sends the whole table into laughter, Yachi giggling while a smiling Hinata puts his arms around Tsukishima and Kageyama, ignoring their looks of distaste. Yamaguchi snickers and slyly pulls out his phone to take a picture, which Yachi pretends not to see. 

Tsukishima pulls out of Hinata’s reach to speak to Yamaguchi, so Hinata turns to Yachi. “Thanks for bringing us together, Yachi-san! I know we saw each other at the old team dinner a few nights ago, but it’s nice to see you all again.”

“Of course!” Yachi says, smiling wide. “I thought it would be nice to hang out again, now that you’re back from Rio.”

“That reminds me!” Hinata pulls a small grey object out of his pocket. “I meant to give this to you!”

Yachi takes the tiny object from his hand, and realizes it’s a small statue of the famous statue in Rio. “Why are you giving me this?”

“It’s a thank you gift!” Hinata shrugs his shoulders, smiling crookedly. There’s a light tint of red on his cheeks.“Your care packages really helped me when things were… well, it was nice to hear all those kind things from everyone.” He turns to Kageyama, and pokes him in the cheek. “You still have to take me to a professional game, you know!”

“We just played a professional game.”

“Yeah, but we need to watch one together! You promised!”

Kageyama rolls his eyes. “Fine.”

“Don’t act like you don’t want to go, Bakageyama!”

As the two men revolve into their repetitive bickering, Yachi fiddles with the tiny statue. Smoothing down the fine curves of the model, her heart swells with pride. She heard Kozume got one from Hinata, and Coach Washijou too. On some level, at least in Hinata’s mind, her small contribution was somehow equal to theirs.

Carefully, she places the statue in her pocket, in the folds of her woolen skirt. 

She’s not special. She really didn’t do much besides organize a few packages to send overseas. But despite that, she was able to provide a meaningful support beam to a friend.

And as she watches her old friends shine in the spotlight of the world stage, she will remember these moments of laughing and joking in a small, crowded izakaya. Their friendship will last, long into the future of who they become.

Though she may be just a Villager B, blending into the background, her supporting role casts light on the main stars. 

**Author's Note:**

> Here I am, churning out another ~1.5k oneshot. I love first year friendships <33
> 
> Thank you to Christie for beta-ing!
> 
> I'm holding a poll on twitter to see what I should write next, if you want to help me decide!
> 
> twitter: [@majesticdeku](https://twitter.com/majesticdeku)  
> tumblr: [majesticanna](https://majesticanna.tumblr.com/)  
> 


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